This Day in History

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1520: Ferdinand Magellan reaches the Pacific Ocean with three ships, becoming the first European to sail from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific (more info) 1895: Frank Duryea wins the first motor-car race in the United States (more info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1095: Pope Urban II declares the First Crusade at the Council of Clermont (more info) 1895: At the Swedish-Norwegian Club in Paris, Alfred Nobel signs his last will and testament, setting aside his estate to establish the Nobel Prize after he dies (more info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1947: The "Hollywood Ten" are blacklisted by Hollywood movie studios (more info) 1952: Agatha Christie's murder-mystery play 'The Mousetrap' opens at the Ambassadors Theatre in London, eventually becoming the longest-continuously-running play in history (more info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1945: Trials against 24 Nazi war criminals start at the Palace of Justice in Nuremberg, Germany (more info) 1947: Princess—now Queen—Elizabeth marries Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten at Westminster Abbey in London (more info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history:

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1869: The Suez Canal, linking the Mediterranean Sea with the Red Sea, opens in Egypt (more info) 1968: Viewers of the Raiders-Jets football game are prevented from watching its exciting finish when NBC switches its broadcast to the movie 'Heidi,' prompting changes to sports broadcasting in the U.S. (more info) Read Mo

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1907: Indian Territory and Oklahoma Territory collectively enter the United States as Oklahoma, the 46th state (more info) 1914: The Federal Reserve Bank of the United States officially opens (more info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1777: After 16 months of debate, the Continental Congress approves the Articles of Confederation (more info) 1867: The first stock ticker is unveiled in New York City (more info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1841: James Braid first sees a demonstration of animal magnetism, which leads to his study of the subject he eventually calls hypnotism (more info) 1927: The Holland Tunnel opens to traffic as the first Hudson River car tunnel linking New Jersey to New York City (more info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1927: Leon Trotsky is expelled from the Soviet Communist Party, leaving Joseph Stalin in undisputed control of the Soviet Union (more info) 1954: Ellis Island, the gateway to America, shuts it doors after processing more than 12 million immigrants since opening in 1892 (more info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1620: Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower sight land at Cape Cod, Massachusetts (more info) 1906; Theodore Roosevelt becomes the first sitting U.S. president to make an official trip outside the country, traveling to inspect progress on the Panama Canal (more info) 1965: A switch at a station near Niagara Falls fails, plung

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1793: After more than two centuries as a royal palace, the Louvre is opened as a public museum in Paris by the French revolutionary government (more info) 1895: While experimenting with electricity, German scientist Wilhelm Röntgen discovers the X-ray (more info)